Hey there,

As a Gen Xer, I can remember life before the internet. Fortunately, my father was always into technology, so at our house growing up, we had the first video games, the first computer and modem, and then of course: America On-Line. Do you remember that horrible sound from the modem? Oh, it was terrible, but once you went ‘online,’ the world was opened to information and communication.

I was in college when computers were first publicly ‘online’ and I was able to begin doing research; it was so nice to have a break from the encyclopedias and stacks of books in the library. I even took a computer class in college where we learned how to use the Internet for research. The college I attended had the World Wide Web to use and Yahoo and AskJeeves for research. It was fascinating!

Jump ahead a few years to when I was in my Master’s program. Some of the classes were called ‘online classes,’ and I did not have to go to a specific location for some classes. I was able to learn and go to school from my home. It was incredible! The crazy thing was that those online classes were actually more difficult than the traditional in-person classes. I didn’t mind, though, because I was able to work and still take the classes.

After completing my Master’s program, I was hired immediately as an adjunct English professor. It was such a nice change from teaching high school, and I loved teaching at the community college level - I still teach for the same college today, but online only. How awesome is that?! I started working for that college in 2008 and went completely online in 2017. Now, I teach for two colleges and am completely online.

As an online professor, I have to teach a little differently than in-person classes. I have to type out all of my lectures and give links to websites and videos that explain concepts. I have to answer emails from students as soon as possible and be as ‘present’ as I can in an online environment. I took a professional development class a few years ago called “Humanizing the Online Classroom.” I learned many things about how to make my classes as ‘live’ as possible. I started making personal videos that explained concepts or even just said, “Hello” to my students, so they knew that there was a person behind the classes and their grades. Presently, when giving feedback to my students, I make it as personal to their needs as possible. I use their name when making comments, and I even record my voice if I have anything important to point out. I do my best to learn new technology and be there for my students as much as I can in an online environment.

Education has definitely changed from when I was in high school and college, and I am fortunate to have memories of a time when there was no Internet or online education. People my age remember how annoying it was to do research back then. I remember the difficulty that it took to find any current information before the internet. Everything was in a book, newspaper, or magazine. I even remember asking my mom what a word meant, and she would tell me to “look it up,” and I begrudgingly had to find the dictionary. People younger than me have no idea what that even means - they just jump on their phones now.

Life is so much easier nowadays when it comes to education, and those of you in a younger generation, consider yourself lucky to have a computer in your pocket!

By: Tracey Oberman, Gen X, Creative Writer, Adjunct English Professor